Machine for recovering precious-metal concetrates



Sept. 7,1926. 9

' A. W. SEVERANCE MACHINE FOR RECOVERING PRECIOUS METAL GOIICENTRATESFiled August 18, 1924 4 ShuthShaet 1 Sept. 7 1926.

A. w. SEVERANCE MACHINE FOR RECOVERI G PRECIOUS METAL CUCBNTRATES 4Shoets-$heet 2 N m u. l; v n N w y U 0 n, 4 J w ifl llllllll ll m h llJ11". M. 4, WE. .i W m 9 f, 9 m 4/ 9 n 5 i W 4 u & MM xx m lhwlil 5 J. MI 4 M W WW IIIHI'I VV/LI/O N5 4" 13 T. n I. 5 3 Z I. a

W/f/ve-sa es: 9 MIA/ g, gw M f his lnven/cr 6 17b h y A. w. sEvERANc':MACHINE: FORIREGOVERING PRECIOUS METAL cogcsu'riuwss Filed August '18,1924 Sept. 7 i926 fldam W Jeve/ance f his W/fh asses Ana/31,0. gwm

S'g'pt. 7, 1926. 1,599,293

A. w. SEVERANCE MACHINE FOR RECOVERING PRECIOUS METAL GONCENTRATES FiledAugust 18, 1924 4 SheetsShoot 4 W/i'nasaes; flwehfw, HWQ, 5W1 fla am W@Severance Patented Sept. 7, 1926.

1 s zrarns ADAM w. .snvnnnnon,ion ronrtAnn, oREeon; AssIGNon TO,onnsevme MACH-ZINE 1 :oo. on PORTLAND, OREGON, U

theorems l on nncpvnsrns rascrons Mn'i'r-u. 'ooNcENTRArEs. it

lApplication-filled.August 18, 1324. iserial N0. 732,704.

-"l\ Iy .inventionfis intendedior use in the recovery of precious :metalconcentrates, and isladapted particularly, :for use in arid countriesWhere all year-unining operations are unknown at-the present-timebecause of a lack (of necessary Water. v.In .my invention' I have soconstructed the machine that the Watermay befused-overand over again. Iam aware that informer machines .the agitation of the ater is caused bythe pumping of airunderpressure and the same is released undernpressure,at or near the bottom of theworkingibasinr But in machines of-this kindthe evapora-tion caused by the release of the air from under pressurewas great; I have toundthatcertain flotation-agents and otherchemicalsmay be added to the Water :that are ofgreat benefit in thescouring-of 'the precious inetals to be recovered that is notpractioalnihere air is used as'an agitating means. y

=-Certain other new and novel elements of my machine reside in theconstruction of the bottom of my Working tank, and int-he recovery, orore valve as ivellasin theag tating bars thatare carried through the'liquid that serve to abradethe materials to be tresliing ofthe surfacesor' faces ot-the Inaterial to be concentrated I create-a-inachine that"has in effectthe essential l elements; for the recovery or the precious-metals by the flotation process. ,Thepumping of the liquids back andthe discharging" of the same at or near the bottom otthe settling and Vconcentrating-tank makjesfpossible the use of a liinited amount oftheater and-otthe added inaterialsto that ofthew'ater to provide asuitable vehicleto accomplishthe'desired results.

In=the drawings Kg. 1 is aside elevation dftheiassembled machine showingthe arrangementand detail'otthe parts composing-the same. s Fig; 2 isapartial sectional view of the outlet end of the machine.

3is an enlargedsideelevation feeding end oi the -I'Ii'aliine.

' "Fig. 4 isfa' parti'lsectlonal, end 'view taken-on 11m et4c-of jFig. 2looking in "the direction indicated.-

' ilFig. 5 is -a sectional end view taken-on particul y of the p v1,599,293} PATENT 11m 5-5 of Fig; [2 lookingdn thetdirection indicatedgithis .view is made the bottom construction. v V 1 F1g,. 6 is asectional ,end vIieW,Emade large, of a .part of ztheibottom section yand'imore pipes. U V I 1 Fig. 7 'is:an end sectional viewof :the orevalve :here shown as a segment of :a circ'le, and Whichis of .adifferent eonstructlon thanzthatusedin the otlleriviewsl .to illustrate4 zto show the liquid bearing -Q.:Fig. 8 s a-deta'iled ifragmentaryvievvot I the agitatinglbars: and the zmeansifor mountlng thesaine.v

Fig. 9 is adetached)sideiel'evation o'fithe side ofithe vinachineinadeto illustrate the operating lever torthe ore valve.

Fig. .10 is a bottom plan KViBW Of the matom, and made .to show :theoperating method for theiore -.val ve and 'the mechanism efor imparting:a side motion of the machine.

1 is the lowenmember ofathe-baselof the machine here shown as a rolledshape: which chinelllooking mpwa'rd (from below ItheIbotto'stheibodyvportion Fig .11 llS also a 'plan' vievvsot one of ais'connectedtO/atOpImember of like mate rial as shown at 3 thesame'ibeing connected by. upright members 2. :For 'convenience lintransportation 1 have madehthe frame the tank" in sections that may:be'-reassem-' sections and have provided fiangedaboilting members Brand;'6 .at which point the vttvo a machine made ot two sections but Ido'anot Wish to oe-ilin' ited to la :two section machine I and haveh'ere shown :a two gsection ':machine for the purpose ofillustratlofan'clgdescriptionfibut inth'e larger 'sized machines :it :may,

become neeessary tozmake maehines of more sections.

an ari d country}v and wateris scarce, a-settling basin'9 is providedintogwhicli thel-Water p drains and from Whichitj is pumped back 5intothe machine. .A suitableipumpingiunit 10is provided' that puinps theWater flOIll when the ahatma-bang o erate-clan}.

water underpressure to create an agitation of the liquids and of thesolids that have gravitated to the bottom of the tank. These pipes aremade triangular in shape and are laid parallel toeach other, as is shownin detail in Fig. .6 leaving a space between the same to permit of thepassage of a rigid member therebetween. The solid mattergravitateswithin this'space and the passage of the rigid member downthis passageway creates a grinding action upon the individual particlesthat tends to renew and polish the surfaces of'the particles to theextent that those of highest speciflc gravity and which are of somemagnitude in size will be carried along to the ore valve outlet. The

discharging of the liquid under pressure,

through the openings 16 creates a great agitation. inxthe depositedmaterial, and the fine material such as gold and the like that is sodeposited may be carried upward and bescreenedoif as inthe flotationprocess.

' The liquids being pumped and so discharged is. made to carry thoseessential elements plate 19 by suitable means and are arranged insubstantially parallel rows. The object for making these pipes orconduits in this shape isJthat it permits the making of thebottoininembers flat and the renewal of individual conduits. Thesetriangular pipes are subjected to great wear because of the abrasivematerialbeing treatedin substantial quantity and. because of the factthat larger quantities are transported in'certain 'partsrthan in othersit is highly desirable that these membersmay be taken out as individualunits.

An endless chain 20 is driven and traverses a course about sprockets 25and 26 and passes about the idler sprocket 27. Disposed. atspaced'intervals, about the chain are cross bars 21'. A flexibleconnection is provided between the cross bar 21 and the drag bar 28. Luggrinders 29 are attached to the cross bar 28 in spaced relationship,correspondingtothe spaces between the water conduits 23. The length ofthese lugs is equal to the depth of the valleys between thewaterconduits, and the width of each is somewhat less than the distancebetween the edges of the water conduits. The weight of these cross barsis suflicient tocreate pressureupon these grinding lugs. The agitationcaused by the incoming water washes the deposited aggregate and theparticles that are sufficiently flne will be suspended in the liquidwithin the tank, the remainder will be ground between the lugs and thecontacting surfaces. Muchof the precious metal that is to be savedxbythis machine has lainexposed to the elements for long periods and thesame becomes oxidized upon its surfaces, making'its recovery moredifficult. The purpose of thisgrinding action is to create brightsurfaces upon the ma.-

terials to be recovered.

' These endless chainsare two or more in number and the sprockets aboutwhich they run are mounted upon shafts journaled within the framestructure. The power unit for operating the same may be mounted upon,the bed of the machine, or the same may be secured from some sourceoutside; in that event a power shaft 30 isprovided having a pulley flywheel 31 mounted thereupon; Mounted upon this shaft is a driving sprockeet with which chain, 32 is engaged and chain 32 also engages with asprocket 33 mounted upon shaft 33 In machines of'the larger capacity Ihave found best resultsare obtained by these driving chains being ofcomparatively short lengths, for the wear tends to increase the lengthof the chain and defective driving is the. result in chains of longlengths; A second chain 33 imparts rotation to the sprocketilt mountedupon the shaft 34. Mounted upon the shaft 34: is a second sprocketdriving chain 35 which imparts rotation to shaft 36,1nounting thesprockets for driving the drag chain20. The pillow block 37 supportingthe bearings for the shaft36 is mounted upon the sloping bracketsupports 39 and as the drag chain becomes loose from wear the chain istightened by the application of pressure upon the screw 38 which isattached to the pillow block. The screw 38 is held in position by thebracket 39. The bars 21 serve also todrag the tailings from H10 machineup the incline tOand deposit the same in the tailing chute 41;

The'incoming materials to be treated in the machine are deposited'in ahopper .42

having a removable screen bottom 13.

A vanner like movement is imparted to the machine treating members andis. ac-

complished by an eccentric 44 mounted upon the main'drive shaft 30, aneccentric strap 4:5 is disposed about the eccentric and. im-

parts an oscillating:movememt to the con nect ng rod 46. The tankstructure 1s sup-' ported :upcn axles J47 upon *whichitrunnion wheels 48are nnounted. These. trunnion wheels 48 :are :mounted up on rtracks thatZdo not runtiparallel JWllIl'l the ibddy structure (of the:machine,ithis is Ihest shownjn @l1?ig.;11.

Thus 'when sin-oscillating movementiisjimparted -to thetankstructureibythe eccentric airlaterahmotion :is imparteditoathertank by the actionof the trunnion wheels-iuponithe tracks,".thus':avanner motioniisimparted to the tank structure. 7 1

Located near the discharge end of the machine is an ore valve made ofthe gate type sired opening of the valve may be obtained.

and as the material that has gravitated to the bottom and is not held insuspension 1n to the frame structure. Opposite the slotted end of thelever 49 is a right angle bend 49 that is adapted to engagement inasuitable hole in the rod 50. 'The rod 50 is pivoted about pin 51 and isattached to the slide, or gate valve at 53. The valve blade 54 hascontact with the seat 55 for a suflicient dis.

tance to compensate forthe slot in the lever 49, and by thepropersetting of the valve in relation to the location of the slot and theclamped position of the set screw 49 the de- At times it may becomenecessary. to provide for the manual manipulation of this valve; this isaccomplished by the disengagement of the lever 49 and placing the samein the dotted .position as shown in Fig. 9. The rod 50 may'then be usedas a hand lever and the same can then be operated at desired intervals.The deposited materials that drop through the valve opening are releasedinto the chute 5 45 and from there deposited into desired receptacles.

The depth of the tank structure will depend upon the kind ofmaterials tobe'treated and upon the character of treatment to be given, butI havehere shown in' detail the character of machine that I have found mostpractical in the recovery of the precious metals having a relativelyhigh specific gravity. a

Having thus described my invention I wish to makethe following claimstherefor '1'. A machine for recovering precious metal concentrates,comprising a sectional frame, a flat bottomed tank mounted within theframe, means for imparting'a vanner action to the tank, triangularconduits arranged in substantially parallellines upon the bottom of thetank said triangular 'conduits adapted to discharge'liquid underpressure TEEBOID EHJGlIL-Si-ClB urea r the flour tot zth'e tank, means,for :aithnitt-ing-imateri'a'ls'zto'abe treated amotthe itank, 'ameanszrt'or grinding and polishing the materials awhile :Jbeing treated,ian.d= dischargingimeansifor the rtreated'imaterials. .1

12. .A- amahine- :for :recovering precious zmetal concentrates,comprising a ,iSGQtlOl'RTl frame, ::a flat "bottomed ztan'kunoimtedwithin "the frame, means ifordmparting :a Wanner motion to the tank,triangular conduits arranged in substantially parallel lines upon thebottom of the tank said triangular conduits adapted to discharge liquidunder pressure from each side near the floor of thetank, means. foradmitting materials to be treated into 'the'tank, means for grinding andpolishing the materials while being treated, and'jdischarging -me'ansfor the treated materials.

8; A machine for, recovering precious metal concentrates,comprising astructural steel frame, a track supported within the 7 frame, trunnionwheels 'mounted on axles adapted to cooperate with the track, a tankstructure,having a flat bottom, mounted on sand axles, meansv forimparting a' vanner movement to said tank, triangular conduits arrangedin substantially parallel "lines upon the bottom of the tank, saidtriangular conduits adapted to discharge liquid:

under pressure from each side near the floor of the tank, endless chainsadapted by means of cross bars, to drag the material to be treated, fromthe inlet end to the discharge end of the tank, flexibly connected dragbars carrying lug grinders attached to cross bars, lug grinders adaptedto impart a grind :ing action on the material to be treated, means forremoving the material of high specific gravity, and means for removingthe .tailings. d

4. A machine for recovering precious metal concentrates, comprising [aframe structure, a tank structure adapted to malnframe and meansforimparting a shaking motion to the tank structure, triangular shapedconduits arranged in parallel rows adjacent the inner bottom surface ofthe tain liquidtherein mounted within the r tank, endlessdrag chains,adapted't'o being" means for depositing screened materials to be treatedwithin thetank, and means for removing the materials of high specifictraversed the length of the tank and having transversely disposed crossbars attached thereto, flexibly connected drag bars carrying'luggrinders attached to'thecross'fl bars, said lugs. adapted to impart agrinding action to the ,material to. be treated,

gravity. in advance of the removal 'ofl'the tailings.

5.-A machine for recovering; precious metal concentrates comprising aframe, structure, a tank structure adapted toma n- 7 tion to the tankstructure, triangular shaped conduits arranged in parallel rows adjacentthe inner bottom surface of the tank, means for discharging Water underpressure from said triangular conduits, endless drag chainsadapted tobeing traversed the length of the tank and having transversely disposedcross bars attached thereto, flexibly connected drag bars attachedto thecross bars, lug grinders secured to said drag bars, and adapted toimpart a grinding action on the material to be treated, means forclepositing screened materials to be treated Within the tank, and meansfor removing the materials of high specific gravity in advance of theremoval of the tailings atone end of the tank.

' ADAM W. SEVERANCE.

